Crash Nation

By Carrie Miller

Crash Nation has the sort of work that visually assaults you like a piece of debris flying around during a cyclone. Which is kind of fitting considering the subject matter. Created by PUNKASILA (an art-music collective founded by Danius Kesminas who is well- known for other collaborative projects such as The Histrionics), the works in this exhibition are a collaboration between 25 Indonesian artists.

The paintings and accompanying CD explore ‘the popular superstition and mysticism surrounding the phenomenon of calamity and disaster in Indonesia’. In keeping with the collective’s punk principles and the exhibition’s theme of natural and man-made chaos, the works combine a cacophony of styles and techniques from high art genres, to graphic art methods associated with comic books, as well as craft practices such as batik and embroidery.

To add to the commotion, each painting is sonically amplified by a track from the Crash Nation CD. This exhibition is an excellent example of what people either love and hate about these sorts of collaborative projects. If it’s your thing, you’ll see it as dynamic, innovative and thought-provoking; if not, you’ll see it as amateur, banal and better off hanging in a cafe.

Until July 21

Darren Knight Gallery, Waterloo

http://www.darrenknightgallery.com/